Carmelo Anthony Challenged Knicks Coaches to Call Him Out for Bad Defense

NBA coaches, for the most part, have little choice but to tip-toe around their superstars’ blunders.

But Derek Fisher is off the hook, it seems. Carmelo Anthony has asked Fisher and his staff to criticize him in front of his New York Knicks teammates for mistakes he makes during games, especially defensive ones.

Melo says he's asked Knicks staff to call him out on film & in meetings when he slacks defensively to hold him accountable in front of team.

Carmelo Anthony issued a “challenge” to the New York Knicks coaching staff recently: He wants them to hold him accountable for his mistakes. […] “Call it out in the film session so everybody can see that and hear that. By them doing that, it kind of forces me to be at the top level of my game on both ends of the court,” Anthony said after the Knicks’ 94-88 preseason victory over the Sixers on Monday. “I think it brings the best out of me and if you bring the best out of me, I think it will bring the best out of everyone on the team.”

Anthony said past coaches have held him accountable in different ways. He mentioned Syracuse coach Jim Boeheim and George Karl, who coached Anthony in Denver, by name. But he said things are different with the Knicks this season because it’s not just Derek Fisher calling out players’ mistakes. […] “It’s more of a collective unit,” Anthony said. “… We’re just sitting down with [members of the coaching staff and video department] and sitting down with players on the team kind of going through different scenarios, different situations and just kind of wanting to be held accountable out there.”

Anthony’s reputation around the league — fair or not — is that of a sub-par defender. But Fisher has praised Anthony’s effort on defense in the preseason. The Knicks have outscored opponents by a total of four points in Anthony’s 67 minutes on the court in the preseason. […] “I feel good on both ends of the court. Mentally, I’m in a good space, physically I feel like I’m almost there,” Anthony said after scoring 18 points on 6-for-11 shooting Monday. “Still got a little bit more work to do, but as of right now I’m headed in the right direction.”